


Getaway? More Like, Get Away!

by welzes



Category: Granblue Fantasy (Video Game)
Genre: Alternate Reality, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-16
Updated: 2018-04-20
Packaged: 2019-04-23 12:55:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 2,218
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14332899
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/welzes/pseuds/welzes
Summary: The Grandcypher’s crew stops by for another beach getaway at Auguste. Lucifer is there, without his powers. Belial is there, too.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [overdrive](https://archiveofourown.org/users/overdrive/gifts).



> When the Paradise Lost album released on iTunes, I bargained with the higher powers for a more accessible release. "Just give me Paradise Lost," I spoke to the heavens, "and I'll write 10,000 more words of GBF fic." So there you have it.
> 
> Incidentally, one of my New Year's resolutions was to write 20,000 words. I reached that mark last month with most of the word count coming from my GBF stories. Thank you for all your comments and kudos—I couldn't have done it without you!

It was a fine day on Auguste. The sun shone, the winds breezed, and the tides hugged the heated sand in an entrancing dance joined by dozens of tourists and beach-goers. At the nearest port, the Grandcypher anchored for a brief, well-earned respite.

The crew proceeded to mingle with those tourists and beach-goers, their worries of skyfaring behind them for the duration of their break. Belial, wearing just enough to avoid arrest for public indecency, slipped onto the mat on which Lucifer and Sandalphon lay.

“Yo, Sandy. Need a hand?” he asked as he shook the bottle of sunscreen in his hand. “We wouldn’t want that fair skin of yours to burn.”

Sandalphon scowled and adjusted the front of his hoodie, then motioned to a bottle lying before his feet.

“We have a bottle,” he said.

“So you do. Let me spread it on your back,” said Belial.

“No.”

Belial shrugged before turning to Lucifer, who had shed his armor back on the Grandcypher and now sat beside Sandalphon with his arms bared like a perfect statue carved by the gods.

“Fine, fine. What about you, Lucifer? I don’t mind giving you a hand or two. Oh, but you’ll need to turn away.” Belial made a circular motion with his free hand, and Lucifer squinted. “I don’t exactly want to see that dull face of yours.”

When Lucifer opened his mouth to speak, Sandalphon all but growled in his stead, “Do you think you’re being subtle? You just want to pretend he’s Lucilius!”

“Yep, and?” asked Belial.

“Leave us.”

“If it bothers you that much, then why don’t _you_ put the sunscreen on _me_?” said Belial, waggling his eyebrows and sighing when Sandalphon only glowered in return. “All right, all right. I know when I’m not wanted. Guess I’ll lube Lucio up instead.”

A quick glance over his shoulder showed Lucio by the shore, engaged in conversation with the crew's captain. Belial turned back, and the corner of his lips quirked upward at the sight of Sandalphon's gritting his teeth.

“Do it to yourself! And cease this nonsense: that’s not lubrication!”

“Speak for your own bottle, Sandy.”

Slamming his hands down on the mat, Sandalphon climbed onto his feet. Blinking, Lucifer reached for him.

“Sandalphon—ah.”

Lucifer stared in silent awe while the archangel in question wrested the suspicious bottle from Belial’s grasp and threw it into the sea. The bottle landed in the water with the barest of splashes, drawing the curious gazes of those nearby. Sandalphon's ears were red and ringing from Belial's laughter by the time Lucio retrieved the fake sunscreen for the purpose of returning it to them as a true Samaritan was wont to be.


	2. Chapter 2

After a peaceful hour of sunbathing, Lucifer sat up.

“Let us test the water,” he said, and Sandalphon followed him to the edge of the ebbing tide.

However, once Lucifer stood knee-deep in the cool seawater, Sandalphon continued to hang back with his feet firmly planted on the sand. Lucifer’s eyebrows pinched together.

“What’s the matter?”

“I don’t know how to swim,” said Sandalphon, glancing at the water.

As archangels who had until recently eschewed contact with the world, neither Lucifer nor Sandalphon had learned the art of swimming. They were creatures of the sky, born to fly on instinct. An irrational concern swept over Sandalphon’s reason: he would sink.

Lucifer closed his eyes, then opened them and extended a hand toward Sandalphon.

“Come,” he said. “We’ll learn together.”

If Sandalphon questioned how Lucifer, who was as much of a novice, would teach him; he said nothing. Instead, he took the proffered hand and a measured step inside. They waded through the water until the sea was level with their waists, when Sandalphon retracted his hand from Lucifer’s grasp.

“Sandalphon?”

“We can’t swim if we’re holding onto each other,” replied Sandalphon.

Lucifer nodded.

“You’re right. Are you ready to begin, then?” he asked.

Just then, a roaring wave from the outer sea coasted toward the shore, crashing down on Lucifer and Sandalphon. The wave passed, and Lucifer emerged from the watery depths to find himself alone. His brow furrowed.

“Sandalphon?”

A hand burst forth from the water several meters to his right. Sandalphon surfaced with a gasping cry, his hoodie drawn haphazardly over his head and sand peppering his face.

“Lucifer!”

“I’m right here,” said Lucifer, wading toward Sandalphon. “Are you all right?”

“It’s just water,” replied Sandalphon as he pulled the hoodie back and rubbed his face clean.

“I did not realize this would happen. To think that they would willfully engage in such risky exercise . . . The people of the Sky Realm are truly courageous.”

“It’s just water.”

“Perhaps we should call upon Gabriel—”

“Ugh! We don’t need her. We came here to swim, didn’t we? So let’s swim already.”

His shoulders squared, Sandalphon waded farther out into the sea that threatened to swallow him whole. Behind him, Lucifer blinked, then smiled and started down the same path. Neither swam with grace; and to the great relief of Sandalphon, nor did they sink like a pair of clumsy birds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lucifer likes saying Sandalphon’s name. Sandalphon, meanwhile, is slowly losing his sanity.


	3. Chapter 3

As soon as Lucifer and Sandalphon were out of the water, Lyria skipped toward them in her straw hat. Vyrn trailed after her, his wings flapping languidly in the hot summer air. With her hands clasped behind her, Lyria smiled radiantly at the archangels.

“Lucifer, Sandalphon! We’re about to play tug of war. Would you like to join us?”

“We would love to,” said Lucifer.

“Do you know what that is?” asked Sandalphon.

“I don’t,” replied Lucifer.

Unperturbed by the admission, Lyria explained the premise of the game: a simple contest of strength between two teams, both of which could always use more participants, held at the water's edge for added punishment to the losing side. Sandalphon smirked.

“All right. We’ll show you the strength that we archangels possess,” he said.

Once he found himself standing in front of Belial and facing Lucifer, who was positioned behind Lyria on the other team, Sandalphon gripped the rope until his knuckles turned white. Vyrn signaled for the tugging to commence, and the rope between the teams went taught in an instant.

Sandalphon’s grip wavered when he felt a knee nudge the inside of his leg.

“Belial.”

A knuckle brushed against the small of his back, unbeknownst to the rest of the team. Their bodies were pressed close together, obscuring any possible view of Belial’s increasingly bold maneuvers.

“Stop touching me.”

“Less talking, more pulling!” shouted Vyrn.

“You look pretty great when you’re all wet and saying my name, Sandy,” whispered Belial.

“Focus on the game,” hissed Sandalphon.

“Oh, I’m focusing, all right. You make an unbelievably enticing game.” Ten seconds later, Belial leaned forward and continued, “And right now, even your dear creator’s looking rather fine, don’t you think? Those _muscles_ —”

“That’s _it!_ ”

Six luminous wings burst forth from Sandalphon’s back, toppling the entirety of his team over and causing the rope to jerk in the direction of Lyria’s team. Both teams fell into the water with a cacophonous chorus of splashes and shouts; whereas Sandalphon remained standing, his chest heaving. The wings vanished as quickly as they had appeared.

With a furrowed brow, Vyrn turned to Sandalphon.

“Er, Sandalphon . . . If this is what you meant by showing everyone your strength, I don’t think it went the way you planned. Thanks to you, your team lost.”

Sandalphon, however, was beyond the point of caring about a children's game and stomped away to retrieve Lucifer, who had cushioned the fall for Lyria and was righting the skewed hat on her head.


	4. Chapter 4

Lyria approached them once more with the promise of a mortal snack known as s’mores. Once again, Lucifer was quick to accept the proposal.

“Do you know what those are?” asked Sandalphon.

“No,” said Lucifer, “but it would be good to try them.”

The five of them—Lucifer, Sandalphon, Lyria, Vyrn, and the Captain—thus situated themselves around the pit, where the fire crackled purposefully against the ocean breeze. Lyria handed each individual a stick and a marshmallow while Vyrn ran through the process: put the marshmallow through the stick, cook it over the fire, and voila!

Marveling at the soft texture of the marshmallow, Lucifer and Sandalphon did as they were told. The outer coat of the marshmallows had started to take on a golden sheen when Belial strolled up to the pit.

“What’s this? Partaking in the sugary pleasures of mortals now?” he asked.

Turning his head in Belial’s direction, Sandalphon glowered.

“Is there a problem with that?”

“No, why would there be? By the way, your marshmallow’s on fire.”

With a low curse, Sandalphon retracted the stick and set it down for the burnt marshmallow to cool. Smirking, Belial held out a stick with a new marshmallow from seemingly out of thin air.

“Here, use this,” he said.

Sandalphon took the stick with a pinched brow, studied the strangely sticky coat of the marshmallow on the end, and began to glance around their immediate surroundings.

“Is Lucio here?” asked Sandalphon.

“I do not see him,” replied Lucifer.

“Good.”

Sandalphon threw the stick into the pit, marshmallow and all. In an instant, the fire devoured the sticky confection. His shoulders drooping, Belial sighed.

“You know, Sandy . . . You’ve been disagreeable all day. First, you threw my lube into the ocean; then, you cost us our game of rope; and just earlier, you walked around me when I was buried in the sand.”

“I wasn’t going to step on you!” spluttered Sandalphon.

“See what I mean?” Belial clicked his tongue, and Lucifer frowned at his next words. “I heard that you used to have a mile-long sadistic streak. Where did that go?”

Then Lyria jumped out of her perch on the log, her eyes ablaze with determination as she strode up to Belial.

“Um, Belial! Here’s another stick and marshmallow for you . . . P-please don’t tamper with these.”

“Aw, Lyria,” cooed Belial. “That’s sweet. Let me know when you feel like trying a different flavor—”

“Sit down and cook your marshmallow,” demanded Sandalphon, grousing when Belial sat down between him and Lucifer.

After the marshmallows were sufficiently toasted, Lyria passed out the crackers and chocolate bars. Sandalphon, who had declined to cook another marshmallow, watched while Lucifer put the snack together with care—and grimaced.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“I’m eating it,” said Belial.

“Stop licking it.”

“Oh? I didn’t realize you were paying me that much attention. Do you want a lick, too?”

Before Sandalphon could toss Belial into the pit, Lucifer leaned forward and held out the neatly arranged s’more with a smile.

“Sandalphon, this is the first time that we’ve made s’mores. Because yours is no more, would you share mine with me?”

“L-Lucifer . . . ”

Stricken with a tender feeling, Sandalphon all but froze and gasped Lucifer's name. Next to him, Belial rolled his eyes.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sandalphon seems to have Belial under control, so Lucifer doesn’t see the need to intervene as a retired overseer. His judgment is interesting and we don’t question it.


	5. Chapter 5

The sun was still shining persistently when Sandalphon, joined by Lucifer, parted from the pit for a stroll. The two of them walked along the shore to a quieter side of the beach, leaving their excited and clamorous crewmates to their own devices.

“Today has been rather eventful,” said Lucifer.

Sandalphon hung his head, avoiding Lucifer’s gaze to peer down at the edge of the tide.

“Sorry,” he replied.

“Why are you apologizing? While it’s true that the atmosphere grew tense sometimes, what matters is that we enjoyed ourselves.” Sandalphon raised his head, and Lucifer smiled. “I hope to continue enjoying the day with you.”

“Well,” started Sandalphon as he straightened. “I have no other plans as of now. I suppose we’ll have to stick together until we return to the Grandcypher.”

The Captain had decreed that they would return to the airship by nightfall. It was no longer morning, but the sun had yet to set and the sky remained a dusky blue. There were still a few hours yet.

“Why don’t we try ice cream once we’re back? It is a novelty desert that skydwellers conventionally consume on a hot day,” said Lucifer.

As Supreme Primach, Lucifer had observed many a skydweller practice from afar. Now that he roamed among those same skyfarers, he was eager to experience what he knew. Sandalphon, on the other hand, found himself far less motivated.

Nevertheless, he said, “What do you want to do after that?”

“Perhaps a round of volleyball. The Captain was talking about playing a few games before it got too dark. Have you ever played?” asked Lucifer.

Sandalphon shook his head, then shrugged.

“I don’t know the rules.”

“While I have never played, I have observed experienced skyfarers of the past and our crewmates today. If you’ll join me, I will teach you what I know,” said Lucifer.

“Sounds like a plan. Should we turn back now?” asked Sandalphon.

“No. Our walk has scarcely begun, and I would have this time with you. Is that all right?”

Lucifer’s eyes met those of Sandalphon, who gave a slight smirk in response.

“We’re not turning around right now, are we?”

So they walked in comfortable silence, the lull between them filled by the sound of the sea’s rhythmic waves, and they only turned around once they could no longer see or hear so much as a tittle of what they’d left behind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lucifer’s turning into a foodie, huh. But as long as he’s happy, Sandalphon is happy too.
> 
> This is the last chapter, and I want to thank everyone who's stuck with the story up to now. My next work will either be a spin-off title for _Color Theory_ (feat. a side character) or a timey wimey canon piece starring Belial. Stay tuned.
> 
> Last but not least, I finally managed to buy “Paradise Lost” this morning. I’m over the moon!


End file.
